50 Years Of Twister

It’s been 50 years since the creation of the iconic game Twister. It was originally called “King’s Footsies” and only played with your feet! When the game was adapted to include hands it was renamed to “Pretzel” and eventually came to be the “Twister” in 1966.

Funnily enough the game initially faced resistance being released in more conservative times as retailers didn’t think it was appropriate to encourage players to end up tangled up together on a mat! Anyone who’s familiar with Twister can appreciate just how up close you can get to other players!

Why There Won’t Be A Video Review

Admittedly when I took on this project I had visions of making a video playing twister for your amusement, but I’ve decided to preserve my dignity. Because not only am I hideously uncoordinated and unbalanced (you should see the bruises on my legs just from everyday life) I’m not very good at remembering my left from right… So basically I am the worst at Twister.

That hasn’t stopped me from playing it in the past. I have fond memories of playing Twister… as a teenager… with alcohol involved. It really is the ultimate party game for drunk people.

The Latest Version

The Twister game I was sent to review has a couple of extra moves compared to the old game I played in my teens.

Spinners Choice – the spinner gets to decide what the players have to do next – and it’s not just for positions, some of the suggested moves include “”Right hand green and whistle your favourite song for 30 seconds” or “Left-hand and play rock, paper scissors with the person next to you”. So that puts an interesting twist on the game (oh dear that was a bad pun.) 

Air – The players have to lift that body part off the mat.

Other Games You Can Play

There are also other games you can play using the Twister mat.

• “Simon Says” Twister. Instead of spinning the wheel someone calls out moves. If they don’t say “Simon says…” then don’t do the move.
• Musical Twister. Children walk around the Twister mat when the music plays. When the music stops they must step onto one colour. Then someone spins the spinner – anyone standing on the colour it lands on is “out”. Repeat until there’s one winner.
• Colour Sorting. Use the coloured dots to sort coloured objects to teach young children about colours.
• Paint Sensory Play. Blob paint matching each circle (ie. red paint on red circle) for a slippery, messy version of Twister. (probably a good idea to do this outside and be prepared to hose everything – and everyone – off)
• Bean Bag Toss. Throw coloured bean bags aiming to match with the coloured circles.

So, tell me – do you love playing Twister?